Happy New Year and welcome back to the garden for 2025! January in the Tropics means our plants are soaking up the humidity, turning everything a vibrant green.
Here’s a no-nonsense guide for what to do in your garden this month:
- Watch for Fungal problems:
- Keep an eye on your plants, especially in humid weather as fungus can be an issue.
- Water your plants in the morning to avoid damp leaves overnight.
- Check around the base of your plants for collar rot, where fungus eats away the cambium layer of the bark. This is usually caused by mulch piled around the stems, so make sure you leave some clearance for air flow.
- Photograph any wilting, blackening or browning plants you may be concerned about and ask our staff how you can treat
- Roses Need Care:
- Apply Trifend every two weeks to roses to prevent black spots and other fungi.
- Clean up fallen leaves around your roses to stop further spread.
- Boost Your Plants:
- Give your gardens, pots, and hanging baskets a shot of Triple Boost Fruit & Veg to make them more resilient in the hotter weather. Make sure they’re well-watered first to avoid any burning.
- Harvest Regularly:
- Pick crops like eggplants, chillis and capsicums often to encourage continuous production.
- Feed Your Fruit Trees:
- Fertilize fruit trees for healthy growth. Monthly with Organic Xtra is best.
- Keep citrus trees well-fed for consistent nutrients and more productive harvests.
- Mulch and Improve Soil:
- Top up gardens with mulch to replenish nutrients in the soil and help with water retention.
- Top up your vege bed with a thick layer of hay. It will break down and add nutrients to the soil for the coming season.
- Apply Bactivate to add beneficial microbes to the soil, making nutrients more accessible to plants and building more resilient root systems.
- Use Organic Xtra while mulching for added nutrition.
- Pest Awareness:
- Keep an eye out for pests like aphids and caterpillars. Seek our advice for best control measures.
- Hedge Care Tips:
Hedges will be thriving with the warm, humid weather, putting on a fast new flush.
Give them a light trim to encourage lower growth, preparing them for a more substantial cut in the coming months.
Lawn Tips:
- Sprinkle Dolomite on your lawn to raise the soil pH and supress some weed growth.
- Apply before heavy rain for natural watering.
What to Plant in January:
Grow Some Green Manure:
Plant quick-growing green manure crops like Buckwheat, beans, millet or marigolds. These will be dug into the soil before they mature to add organic matter to your soil.
Try Non-Traditional Greens:
All year greens will keep you harvesting in between the seasons of growing our more traditional favourites.
Explore Brazilian spinach, Mushroom plants, Sweet leaf, Kang kong, Tropical Ginseng, and Aibika. They withstand the wet season.
Herbs Still Going Strong:
Continue harvesting Winter Tarragon, Perennial Coriander, Pineapple Sage, and Mint.
Give a light trim and fertilize to encourage healthy, productive growth.
Spice up your kitchen with tropical favourites
Add ginger, turmeric, and galangal to add some variety to your kitchen flavours.
Harvest small amounts of the rhizomes for use in the kitchen. The main harvest will occur in July.
Feed with Organic Xtra to encourage growth and development of large, healthy rhizomes.
Sweet Potatoes Are Reliable:
Harvest and consume sweet potato leaves as an alternative to regular greens.
Sweet potatoes are great for supressing weeds during this time of fast growth.Plant Fruit Trees:
Plant citrus, avocado, banana and paw paw trees to establish during the rainy season.
Check your soil drainage for happy, productive trees.
May your garden thrive in January!